Best Last Minute Accommodations in Paris

The adventure in a vacation destination often begins before one steps on the plane. The word really is what it means :An unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.

Reading travel guides, researching the metro, sites to see, planning day trips are the positive side of the “adventure” definition. It’s my favorite thing to do.This book by Karen Henrich is filled with tips, links, and insider information- a bargain at 2.99 for Kindle or Free on Kindle PRIME lending library.

My travel pal and I have a great place to stay for a week, thanks to her timeshare option, in northern France. It’s the other 22 days that are the ‘not so positive’ side of the adventure. Yes, I’ve heard it all about starting early, especially from a TripAdvisor poster, who replied to my request for assistance on lodging options, with a snarky, chastising comment. The other comments were helpful and options offered were B & B’s, hostels, and apartment hotels with the websites listed.We aren’t too picky but we do need two different sleep areas: twin beds or bed and sofa bed, preferably in Arrondissements 1-14, with elevator if beyond the 2nd floor, non-smoking and no more than 800 Euros per week (that’s $1,000 USD).Searching for an apartment on line has been the hazardous part of this adventure. You have to know the nomenclature for your search:Footage is listed as 23 m2. That is square meters or approximately 230 square feet. Kitchens can be hot plates and a tea kettle.

Lofts, that have a bed, often have a 4 to 5 foot clearance. Roll out of bed, don’t stand up.Historical buildings are beautiful but don’t expect elevators.Sofa’s are usually futons. I have to think twice about sleeping on a thin futon for days. No Linen means you have to fork over 20-50 Euros each for bed sheets and towels. No util means you pay for gas, light, water. Ground floor does not mean the 1st floor. So the second floor is the 3rd “American” floor. Excludes agency fee. These fees range from $200 to $350, by credit or Paypal prior to arrival.And off the top, it is rare to find air conditioning. This is what they do in Paris instead. (Fine with me).

Bonjour.com

There are hundreds of property sites online. I have perused 50. Only a handful made it on my “best last minute search list.” *These are ‘best’ because of the ease of use, photos, map locater, and pertinent info on the page without having to click through to others, plus Euro converter, a ‘my favorites’ list to refer too and some have a free protection plan. Many of these sites also search for other locales:

The good news is that the we have found an affordable place in the 11th Arr. through Home Away and are waiting to sign a contract. It’s huge: 600 sq. feet.

This site, and the others, all had speedy customer service, their rental calendars were up to date, and the listed prices didn’t change. Even better- we were able to get our place for a couple of hundred Euros less because we are staying more than 7 days.

I’d like to post as many legitimate sites as possible on TripAdvisor and help out fellow travelers.(even the snarky one).

If you have had good experiences with lodging sites, will you please let me know?

Hopefully, our accommodations search is over, but I’m sure that the adventure has just begun.

*Please note: I have not used 4 of these sites nor am I affiliated with any of them. I’ve used VRBO and HomeAway before and they were fine. With any travel sites, check out reviews from a couple of sources before you make a decision.

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Published by AlvaradoFrazier

I write YA and Adult fiction about strong women, difficult circumstances and characters on both sides of the law. Member of SCBWI.
My short stories are included in anthologies published by the University of Nevada and Harvard College press of 2017 and 2018.
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